A: Just as it is difficult to recommend one "best automobile," it is also not easy to
recommend one telescope model as the best choice for all situations.
But a few guidelines can be given:

(a) Although
you probably don't want to buy the "biggest telescope in the store"
as your first instrument, don't purchase a toy, either. Low-quality
telescopes, of which unfortunately there are many available, serve
more to stifle the interests of a beginning amateur astronomer than
stimulate them;

(b) Establish a
reasonable budget, and then buy the largest aperture (diameter)
telescope that is within that budget; remember, it is aperture, not
power, that determines what you will actually see through the
telescope;

(c) If the telescope
is a first-time purchase for a youngster on a modest budget, keep in
mind that 60mm refractors (e.g., Meade Models NG-60 and NGC-60) have
been the initial instrument for tens of thousands of amateurs
through the years;

(d) If your budget
permits, Meade 4.5" reflecting telescopes (e.g., Model DS-2114ATS)
or the exquisite Meade ETX Series, are excellent intermediate
telescopes that will satisfy the majority of inquiring minds, young
and old;

(e) If you feel
that
the astronomical interests of the user, whether gifted young person
or adult, will be sustained, consider purchasing a telescope that he
or she will likely never outgrow, such as a LDX55 Series, 8LX90, or
LX200 GPS Series Telescope.

Do I need
to take my telescope out in the country,
away from city lights, to
realize its full potential?

A: Some types of objects
(e.g., nebulae and galaxies) are best observed in a dark-sky
environment, although even many of these are clearly observable
through small telescopes in the city. The Moon and planets, by
contrast, can be studied about equally well from the city or
country.

The basic rule is that while observations made outside the
city generally reveal more detail, particularly in deep space, there
are still a great many objects within the grasp of a small telescope
in urban areas.

Do I have to be an expert in astronomy to enjoy using a
telescope and locate interesting objects to
observe?

A: Most
first-time telescope users know little or nothing about
the night sky, and you certainly do not need a course in
astronomy to enjoy your telescope to the fullest.

Begin
with the objects easiest to find: the Moon, Jupiter,
Saturn, Venus, Mars. All of
these are bright objects even in the midst of a big-city
environment and can be located by using star maps in
popular monthly magazines such as Astronomy or Sky &
Telescope.

For more advanced celestial listings, use
Meade Star Charts or Meade Epoch 2000sk sky software.
With only a little study, you will quickly be
star-hopping from one object to another.